Body of second sanitation worker recovered after six-day search operation in Hyderabad

HYDERABAD: After a marathon search operation lasting six days, the body of sanitation worker Ananthaiah was finally found on Monday afternoon about 300 metres from the site of the accident at Padmavathi Colony in Saheb Nagar. The decomposed body was found floating in a manhole more than 10 feet down.

Ananthaiah and another worker Shiva had slipped into the manhole and died due to asphyxiation while taking up desilting work at Padmavathi Colony last Tuesday.

The body of Shiva was traced last Wednesday but the body of Ananthaiah could not be traced till Monday afternoon.

Before the team from Coimbatore could take up the search operations, the body was traced in the third manhole. Relatives of the deceased Ananthaiah who were at the spot were seen wailing inconsolably.

Over 200-300 workers, drones, three boats, rescue teams from DRF, fire services and GHMC were pressed into service to trace the body of Ananthaiah in the manholes and nearby water bodies.

Taking a serious view of the incident in which the two Dalit workers lost their lives, the state government has suspended an assistant engineer and a work inspector and terminated one outsourcing working inspector for lapses. The government also shunted out two senior officials from the GHMC and transferred them to the Greater Warangal Municipal Corporation and Jagityal Municipality with immediate effect. Last Saturday, the Municipal Administration and Urban Development (MAUD) shunted out two senior officials from GHMC and transferred them to GWMC and Jagityal Municipality.

Executive Engineer (PH) K Rajaiah was transferred and posted in GWMC while Deputy Executive Engineer, Bhadru Nayak was transferred and posted to work in Jagityal Municipality.

Hyderabad Mayor Vijayalaxmi Gadwal along with LB Nagar MLA D Sudheer Reddy handed over the ex gratia payment of Rs 10 lakh each to the members of the deceased families Shiva and Ananthaiah last Saturday.

Another ex gratia payment of Rs 2 lakh each from the Mayor's fund was released to the bereaved family members. The private contractor also provided Rs five lakh each to the deceased family members.

Meanwhile, the GHMC engineering wing that dug the storm water drain upto 100 metres to trace the body and stopped the work midway will take up restoration of the drain from Monday.